The present invention relates to a container, its support structure and an image formation apparatus. More particularly, this invention relates to an identification structure for respective containers. The container is for example a cartridge that encase developer inside.
Developing is carried out in image formation apparatuses such as copying machines, facsimile machines and printers that make use of electrophotographic copying. Toner is used as a developing material (xe2x80x9cdeveloperxe2x80x9d) in such developing. The toner is supplied to an electrostatic latent image formed on an image carrier such as a photoreceptor to make the image visible, i.e. develop the image.
The developing is performed in case of not only monochrome images but also color images such as full color images. When full color images are to be developed, a developing apparatus encases developers that are of complementary colors of the colors of the electrostatic latent image.
Naturally, the toner gets consumed during the developing. If there is insufficient toner, then in worst case, proper image cannot be formed. Conventionally, the developing apparatus in the image formation apparatus is a tank (xe2x80x9ctoner tankxe2x80x9d) containing the toner. Sometimes the developing apparatus may include another container that contains additional toner for supplying new toner to the toner tank when the toner in the toner tank is consumed. This additional container will be referred to as supply developer cartridge.
The supply developer cartridge has been conventionally constructed as having a cylindrical bottle structure or as a hard encasement. When supply developer cartridge becomes empty it is collected by a serviceman. These collected cartridges are stored until they are recycled or discarded. However, these supply developer cartridges occupy considerable space and a large space is required to store these cartridges. In order to maintain large space, there is a drawback, that the cost increase.
When plurality of cartridges including the supply developer cartridges containing color developers are used, information on the developers encased inside must be identified from the outside. Conventionally, a method has been known in which a seal or a bar code display member displaying the contents is attached on the exterior surface of the cartridge. However, in this method, there is a risk of not being able to identify the contents if the attached member is detached accidentally.
There has been another method in which an identification section is molded in the cartridge itself. In this method, recesses or protrusions are provided on a section of the exterior surface of the cartridge. Further, the recesses and the protrusions are formed into different shapes in such a manner that the contents can be identified by the fitting state of the section into fitting points provided on a position where the cartridge is to be loaded.
However, in this another method, the molding cost of the cartridge is high, and there is a possibility of increasing the cost of the cartridge itself. If information on destinations of the cartridges from the factory is added in addition to the identification of the contents, the number of the recesses or the protrusions must increase extraordinarily and there may be a problem of having to increase the size of the cartridge itself. In such a method in which compatibility and incompatibility between the cartridge side and the side to be loaded onto are involved, machining cost and cost of apparatuses using the machined cartridges increase, and downsizing of the apparatuses cannot be achieved.
It is an object of this invention to provide a container having a structure of which downsizing is possible without any increase in cost of management and machining, a support structure of the container, and an image formation apparatus in which the cartridges according to the present invention are mounted.
The container according to this invention comprises a container body having a collapsible structure formed with walls surrounding a hollow interior space, wherein when constructed said container has an aperture; and an encasement which encases a toner and which can be accommodated in the space in said container body, said encasement having a volume-reducible inflated body, said encasement having a seal aperture formed in a sealing section provided in a section of said encasement, wherein said seal aperture can be loaded in said aperture of said container body. The encasement is loaded inside said container body before said container body is constructed, and an encasement space is constructed inside as said seal aperture is loaded in said aperture of said container body.
Other objects and features of this invention will become apparent from the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings.